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This one is a really important one for me, as currently I am doing a lot of dimension and annotation drawings.I would like to request an option to be added to the dimension settings for both drawing and application settings to be able to choose whether the dimension text is to the right or left side or over the top or underneath the dimension line.This would help tremendously when a lot of dimensions are needed!

It would be nice to have the option for a “Short” Extension Line.This is often used in Architectural drawings.Yes, I know that I can explode a dimension and change it to that what I’m asking for - but that is really a Sisyphus task and destructs the function of a dynamic Dimension in QCAD.

With the new block attribute feature available in QCAD 3.3, there’s little to be done in order to make QCAD a good environment for typesetting circuits and other diagrams. In particular, the only killer feature that lasts is support for connectors: orthogonal lines that connecting one endpoint to another creates a connection line; when the concerned entities are moved the connection line is re-arranged. I’d like to know whether commercial support for this feature is available.

It would be nice to have in “Application preferences” the possibility to predefine a couple Custom Property Names.Right now I use the Custom Property function to add a DIN and the Material info to every Block. This project has a lot of DIN parts and I have to type again and again the names DIN ... Material ... DIN ... Material ... DIN ... Material ... DIN ... Material ... DIN ... Material ... you got my point

There is the Synchronize attributes feature which works well. But It affects only block references in the active layout(modelspace, block layout). If I want to synchronize attributes of block references in in another blocks, i have to manually go through all blocks and run synchronize attributes feature. That is the reason I would like to modify Synchronize attributes feature to affect all block references in a drawing, or add new Deep synchronize attributes feature.

This would be a modification tool. Parts are selected, a toolpath is generated, and a dialog pops up to allow putting the tool path into an existing layer, a new layer, or replace all drawings in an existing layer.

This is how the toolpath is generated:

We iterate through all elements and explode everything but text into line segments. Then we connect the line segments into chains wherever the line endpoints are less than some tolerance away from each other. The chains can be very chaotic, but at least we have separate entities for now.

For every chain, we need to find the largest complete loop. A good drawing would only contain non-overlapping loops, but we can’t expect that. Everything that is not on this loop can not be defined as a part or as a hole, so we will merely create a tool path segment that is equivalent to the line segment. Every segment that *IS* on a loop is either an outside edge (part outline), or an inside edge (hole outline), (or overlapping, in which case it is neither, and we have an operator problem).

In a perfect world, we need to find exactly which shape is inside which other shape, and then create alternating tool offsets from the outmost loop (part edge) to the second outmost (hole), to the next (part) etc. .

In a simplified world, we can used the bounding box of the loop instead. This works OK for rectangular shapes, but a circle next to an “L” shape could be seen as inside the L’s bounding box, hence inside the L, wrongly accused of being a hole, not a part.

Now all that is left to do is to create a new loop, offset by the tool radius. Oh, and since we have the connections from line segment to line segment in the correct order already, we can use the opportunity to order all cutting loops from inner to outer, or from small to large, and order non-loop edges by travel distance.

The new drawing in the new layer can now be exported without further hassle to create a nice laser cut file.

PS: of course, a user could create multiple layers for marking, cutting, enraging, etc. . Additional Layer attributes for cutting speed and laser power (and a few more) would be needed.

often I’m in the situation that I have to create an additional Layer mostly based on the settings from an already existing Layer. Just a question of organization. This new Layer has then everything identical except the name and one(?) Attribute. This could be that only the color or the Line weight deviates.

Example:

Existing Layer

Layer name: Lot 47 area existing

Attributes

Color: Red

Lineweight: 0.35

Linetype: Dashed

New Layer

Layer name: Lot 47 area proposal

Attributes

Color: Blue

Lineweight: 0.35

Linetype: Dashed

Unfortunately if done manually it happens in an blink of an eye that the human imperfection (me!) makes a mistake and (e.g.) a “Center (.5x)” finds it way into the Linetype Field instead of a “Center (.2x)” ....

The workaround for a few User is to use in cases like this the Property Editor / General Property and customize single Attributes. In my opinion the first step to lose the control over your own drawing ...

A “Copy Layer” / Copy Layer Attributes” function would speed up this task and eliminate to a minimum the “human imperfection” factor.

I could imagine that a right click (like copy block) on the Layer triggers the “Add Layer” function and the dialog is already prefigured with the Settings of the Source Layer ...... ready for editing.The new Layer itself is “empty” like any other new Layer.

When dimensioning my drawings I always want the dimensions to be on the dimensions layer.When adding text I want the text to be on the text layer.When drawing an infinite line it is always a construction line, therefore I want it to be on the construction line layer.When drawing a line segment it almost always is on my outline layer.

So I propose a new option to bind certain actions to certain layers.Whenever those actions are selected the layer should automatically be switched.

I can imagine this being implemented in the General→Tool Settings menu, where the short cuts are defined.

In the comnmand line, I can sucessfully enter for example the radius of a circle to draw (Space 100 Enter) but the command line does not accept a value for the distance when drawing parallel lines (l p space 100 enter → error).

Would it be possible to arrange the Menu, CAD-Toolbar, Toolbar, Menu, Tool Matrix with customized keywords, like “simple”, advanced” and “expert” to show only a minimum for user there are begin with CAD, advanced for CAD-User, and expert for construction.

I would appreciate an option for the library Browser that gives me the possibility to decide by my self to use the current (same name) layer in my drawing or overwrite it with the existing layers in the library item.

I have created a drawing, where the CENTERS of the most outer lines have a distance of 3.06mm in both X and Y.The line weight of these outer lines is 0.6mm, so the whole image is 3.06mm + 2* 0.6mm/2 = 3.12mm wide and long (center to center plus half of the line weight on every side).Additionally in the export there is a frame around the image, making it 3.12 + 2*frame.The export function however calculates 3.06mm when setting the resolution to 1000Pix/cm, so it does not include the line weights and the outer frame.

You can apply the command to Lines, PolyLine segments, Arcs, Circles, and Rings:

For linear entities parallel to an axis of the coordinate system, aligned Dimensions (parallel Dimensions) are created. For linear entities not parallel to an axis of the coordinate system, either aligned Dimensions (measuring the absolute distance between two points) or horizontal or vertical Dimensions (measuring the horizontal or vertical distance between two points) depending on where you move the pointer are created.

Click Dimension > Auto (or type AutoDimension).In the graphics area, select an entity to dimension.Click to place the dimension line.To use another dimension type for Circles or Arcs, specify an option:Diameter. Creates a diameter Dimension.Radial. Creates a radial Dimension for an Arc or Circle.Linear. Creates a linear Dimension of the diameter of a Circle or an aligned, horizontal, or vertical Dimension between the end points of an Arc.Angular. Dimensions the angle between the end points of an Arc.Arc length. Dimensions an Arc length.Note: The chosen option is the default the next time you use the AutoDimension command.

When you move the pointer during a linear dimensioning, you can:Lock. Determines the current dimension type (aligned, horizontal, or vertical) regardless where you move the pointer.Unlock. Unlocks the type of linear dimension used.Press Enter.

***In short, when you use this tool you click on an entity and it will know what dimension you’re looking for. For Circles, you can specify in the command window R or D for Radius or Diameter.This would be extremely useful on large drawings where a lot of dimensioning is to be done. One tool and start clicking on entities for dimensioning.

Large files/large entities perform bad in QCad. There are many dxf files that are created with thousand of lines that perform reasonable in other cad’s/cam’s that qcad cannot match.

One very useful tool, that could be added would help to improve qcad performance and at the same time enlarge the dxf quality (by replacing thousand of files by arcs), would be a tool called “arc fit” where, when possible and under a determined possible error margin (user selectable) creates arcs replacing the existing lines.This would improve the file work in QCad also improves CAM software that would work after QCad, that I think is important for many users.

For example, if it is needed to use qcad to generate toolpaths for letters, after exploding letters, the output is almost impossible to work due to the number of lines that are created. Having arcs instead of lines would greatly improve qcad use.

The Info Tool Polygonal Area is a helpful tool ... but I like to ask for additional options

Yes, the polygonal area makes absolute sense but many times you have just to check a square or rectangle area!

It would be nice and time (click) saving if we could use a “Strg Key” to limit the polygonal area to just a rectangle area.Two mouse clicks for a rectangle area and done

In addition to that it would be nice to have the possibility to count up or down a couple areas.E.g. I measure area 1 plus area 2 or area 1 minus area 2 ...Maybe just with an additional keystroke like + or -